


Rainbros

by Leahelisabeth (fortheloveofcamelot)



Series: All for the Game Tumblr Prompts [4]
Category: All For The Game - Nora Sakavic
Genre: Bro hugs, Found Family, Friendship, Gen, Matt is the Best Bro, Neil is a Runner, bros
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-17
Updated: 2017-09-17
Packaged: 2018-12-30 16:37:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 808
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12112812
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fortheloveofcamelot/pseuds/Leahelisabeth
Summary: This is for  a Tumblr prompt: "I messed up," with Neil Josten for sonyathefairy.





	Rainbros

Neil is sure that he is supposed to care that cold water is dripping down the back of his neck, that a hailstone has grazed his cheek and might be bleeding, that he’s running through trees in a lightning storm. But the truth is, he just doesn’t. At this point, he barely notices it over the harsh breaths rattling in his lungs and the quivering of his thigh muscles. His face is wet and he doesn’t even know any more if it is from tears or rain.

The rumbling of a vehicle cuts through the fog as it slowly drives beside him but he ignores the sound of his name and keeps running. The truck cuts in front of him to block off his path and he moves to go around it but a tall figure has jumped out of the driver’s seat and is blocking him from going any further.

“Get in the truck, Neil,” Matt shouts over the sound of the storm. Neil pulls away and tries to keep running but he is embarrassingly weak and Matt holds him easily. He wrestles Neil into the passenger seat and Neil is ready to hop out again once Matt heads around the hood to the driver’s seat but know that he is out of the cold and the wet, he can’t bring himself to head back out in it.

Matt is silent as he drives back to the tower. He still doesn’t speak as he pulls Neil out of his little puddle in shotgun and manhandles him up to their bedroom. Neil waits in dread even as Matt grabs him dry clothes and shoves him into the bathroom to change. He emerges and Matt grabs him and roughly dries his hair with a towel before wrapping him in a blanket and pushing him down onto the couch. Suddenly Neil is holding a cup of cocoa fresh from the microwave and Matt is sitting beside him. 

Matt is hugging his stomach and tapping his fingers on his forearms and determined not to look at Neil. He had been expecting one of the famous Boyd hugs the moment he walked into the living room and was pathetically grateful that Matt had known it wasn’t the right time. Neil looked over and considered for a little while before picking his feet up off the floor and turning to dump them in Matt’s lap.

Matt relaxed almost instantly as he started to rub Neil’s feet and ankles with his big warm hands. Neil closed his eyes and leaned his back against the arm of the couch and let the strong strokes of Matt’s fingers ground him in the present. He isn’t looking but he can feel Matt’s eyes on him, wondering. And Neil can’t help but feel that he is at a crossroads. He could stand up, say thank you to Matt, and go crawl into bed and leave Matt outside.

Neil took a deep breath and then another. “I messed up,” he said.

Matt’s hand stills for a moment before digging into the arch of Neil’s foot to work out a knot. He still doesn’t say anything and that gives Neil the bravery to move on.

“I shouldn’t have come here. I’m not supposed to get attached. I need to keep running and all I want to do is stay,” Neil mumbles into his cup of hot chocolate.

Matt hummed and kept rubbing.

“It’s okay to talk,” Neil said, still staring down into his cup.

“”What happened?” Matt asked.

Neil thought about everything, the kisses still burning on his lips, the pleasant feel of hands holding his wrists into the carpet, and the “47” burning a hole in the phone in his pocket. But it was more than that, it was Allison’s fingers in his hair on movie nights, Nicky’s stupid jokes over lunch, Matt’s big bear hugs that managed to be overwhelming but safe, and Kevin’s hard to catch approval on the court. “I’m just...attached.”

“It’s okay to want things,” Matt said slowly. “I guess I still don’t know much about you but I can guess a few things. You were alone a lot, yeah?”

Neil nodded.

“Yeah. But just because you lived that way doesn’t mean that is the way you have to keep living. Do you know what I mean?” Matt finally managed to catch Neil’s eye.

“I...sort of,” Neil said. Matt lapsed back into silence.

Later, Dan and Allison came over with popcorn and a movie and Neil ended up sandwiched between Dan and Matt with Allison on the floor leaning her back against his knees and Neil gave in and let himself run his fingers through her hair. And he was hemmed in on all sides with nowhere to run but it didn’t matter because, at least for tonight, his restless feet were still.


End file.
